Lombard comes up short in quest for 'Most Fun' title

The Lilac Queen and princesses typically ride one of the last floats in the The Lilac Parade in Lombard. (File photo, Chicago Tribune)

Lombard touted its 200 varieties of lilacs, and its villagewide get-togethers, but the west suburban village came up short in its pursuit of being named Most Fun small town in the nation.

Instead, Corning, N.Y., earned the title in Rand McNally's Best of the Road contest.

Winners of various categories in the contest for communities with a population under 150,000 were announced Tuesday. Online voting determined the finalists, and then the top five towns in each category submitted videos and photos.

Though it wasn't named most fun, Lombard proved it could be most gracious as village officials congratulated Corning on its win. Village President Keith Giagnorio thanked supporters who voted for Lombard.

"Every picture or video submitted, every tweet, every Facebook post helped contribute to our success in the contest. We'll continue to enjoy year-round fun in Lombard and hope travelers will plan a trip to come out and join us," Giagnorio said in an email.

Lombard received 1,822 online votes and waxed about its Lilac Time Festival, Cruise Nights and Taste of Lombard in its video entry. It also cited facilities including the Paradise Bay Water Park and the Enchanted Castle Restaurant and Entertainment Complex.

Rebecca Oistad, a vice president at Rand McNally, said the competition was tough, and it was hard to choose a winner.

"Lombard's entry was very strong, and all of the judges felt like they did a very good job demonstrating all of the great, fun things to do within the village," she said.

Other contenders in the Most Fun category were Jim Thorpe, Pa., Nocona, Texas, and Geneva-on-the-Lake, Ohio. They led a field of 281 communities nominated for the award, Oistad said. The other categories were Most Beautiful, Most Patriotic, Friendliest, Best Food and Best for Geocaching.

Illinois did not totally lose out. Kewanee, about 100 miles west of Joliet, won in the category of Friendliest. Oistad said the "genuine persuasiveness" of Kewanee's video stood out.

"All the judges were convinced that it was incredibly heartfelt, and we really were able to get a true sense of the town's friendly nature," she said.

Though Lombardians might be disappointed by the loss, there's always next year. Oistad noted that Corning was a finalist in last year's contest.